Self-Portrait
1964/1969
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
gelatin silver print
Dimensions
image/sheet: 13.7 x 20.6 cm (5 3/8 x 8 1/8 in.) mount: 35.6 x 27.9 cm (14 x 11 in.)
Classification
Photograph
Department
CPH
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Patrons' Permanent Fund
Accession Number
2001.22.84
Art Historical Context
Lee Friedlander's *Self-Portrait* (4/1969) exemplifies the innovative spirit of mid-20th-century American. Friedlander, a master of street photography associated with the "New Documentary movement, frequently explored self-representation through fragmented reflections, shadows, and urban clutter. Created during the 1960s—a pivotal era when photographers like Friedlander challenged traditional portraiture—this gelatin silver print captures his signature playful yet probing approach to identity and perception. The medium, gelatin silver print, is a hallmark of black-and-white photography, prize...
About the Artist
Lee Friedlander
Lee Friedlander, born on July 14, 1934, in Aberdeen, Washington, to a Finnish-descended mother, Kaari Nurmi, and German-Jewish émigré father, Fritz Friedlander, discovered photography at age 14 amid a fascination with the medium's equipment. Tragedy marked his childhood when his mother died of cancer at age seven, yet he pursued his passion, earning pocket money with a camera before studying under...